When Harry S. Truman was born, May 8, 1884, his father, John Truman, marked the day by nailing a mule shoe above the doorway and by planting a new pine seedling to grow with his firstborn son. While the gesture to provide good luck lasted in the long run for the 33rd president, his early years were plagued with accidents, poor eyesight, and a nearly paralyzing disease. Harry, however, grew up surrounded by loving, strong-willed, and doting parents, grandparents and other relatives. These strong relationships enabled him to accept himself no matter what external problems he would face. One such relative who greatly influenced his early years was Grandfather Young. Solomon Young was openly taken with his little grandson and frankly bragged about what an amazing little fellow he was. Vivian was Harry’s younger brother by two years. He had long curls, which his mother refused to cut. Evidently, the long curls bothered Grandfather Young to the point he decided to take control of the situation.
One day, he had Harry help him haul Vivian – highchair and all – out onto the south porch where Grandfather Young quickly gave Vivian a short haircut. Harry’s mother was furious, but said nothing out of respect for her father. A few days later, Harry decided to experiment with his own hair and comb it a different way. He pulled a big chair up close to a mirror in order to see the back of his head. He kept leaning in the chair until he fell over backwards, breaking his collarbone – his first, but not his last broken bone. Harry was particularly close to his mother, a college educated and outspoken woman. She valued art, reading, and music and saw to it that Harry had the same interests. She taught Harry to read from the large print Bible before he was five, but she noticed he had a hard time reading newsprint and distinguishing objects coming down the road. Then came the Fourth of July celebration in Grandview where the climax was a series of colorful rockets bursting in the air. Harry jumped at the exploding sounds but could not see the shiny showers of the fireworks.
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